Enhancing Services Through the Innovative Use of Information and Technology

Renews service and program delivery, strategically invests, develops partnerships, builds an open architecture and core infrastructure, and it decentralizes computer power to managers and staff.

Date modified: 1994-01-07

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1. Background

This statement of policy direction was developed by the Treasury Board Secretariat with support and advice from the TBSAC Information Management Subcommittee and the Advisory Committee on Information Management. It reflects wide consultation with government departments, interdepartmental committees, other levels of government and the private sector.

There are enormous opportunities for the government to improve its services and program delivery through innovative use of information and technology. Government by its very nature is an information-intensive service provider. Vast amounts of information are required to deliver benefits like family allowances, pensions and unemployment insurance, and services like health, safety and security. It requires complex information systems to support programs such as taxation, scientific research and statistics. Substantial improvements in government productivity, service quality and the cost of administration can be achieved by managing information and designing systems to take advantage of modern technology.

Recent technological advancements in information management systems have dramatically reduced the cost of applications while increasing their efficiency and effectiveness. Because of technology, information can be captured, stored, managed and distributed more effectively than ever before. Fast, accurate access to information provides the means to enhance service to clients and results in better decisions.

2. Vision 2001 - Government service at the start of the new millennium

What will it be like to do business with, or to work for, the government in five or 10 years? This vision describes what could be possible if the government capitalizes on the initiatives outlined in this strategic direction document.

Information at your fingertips: Canadians will have access to government information from their homes. Employees will make on-the-spot decisions using systems to gain access to information and expertise.

Electronic service: Canadians will be able to conduct routine transactions electronically with the government seven days a week, 24 hours a day, through conveniently located service kiosks, automated bank teller machines or home computers. Routine transactions between the government and the private sector or between departments will be carried out electronically.

The computer will be just another appliance: By recognizing voice and handwriting, and communicating images, computers will be easier to use. Employees will be comfortable with computers and will use them widely in their work.

These changes flow from five key building blocks for progress:

People: People's attitude to technology is changing. Their knowledge, proficiency and confidence are improving and resistance is lessening. People are getting used to electronic service and are preferring to be served this way. New employees expect to use technology extensively in their jobs.

Applications: Knowledge is increasingly available through expert systems that answer queries as a specialist might. Packaged systems and new system-development products reduce the cost of applications, deliver them more quickly and are easily found.

Information: Text, graphics, data, sound, video and pictures can be managed in the same database or document and access to multiple databases is easier. Paper is being replaced by electronic documents.

Networks: Communicating large volumes of information is more feasible as costs decrease while capacity increases. Business television, small portable telephones, satellites and new services on the public telephone network suggest new ways to provide services.

Standards: Invisible to the user, non-proprietary standards allow hardware, applications and databases of many vendors to be "plugged" together, unrestricted by technical concerns.

Investment in these technologies will be driven largely by three needs: to improve the delivery of service to the public, to significantly increase productivity in the Public Service, and to increase Canada's international competitiveness in a global economy. Partnership with other departments, other levels of government and labour, and alliances with business will be an accepted and widely used model of cooperation. In an era of smaller, decentralized government functioning within the challenge of restraint, technological choice will be shrewdly analysed and will conform to this strategic direction.

The government's vision for information management is the orderly transition to a seamless technological environment, in the home or in the workplace, at the service of Canadians.

3. Strategic direction for the 90s

The government's strategic direction for enhancing services through the innovative use of information and technology encompasses five major objectives:

renewing services and program delivery,
investing strategically,
building partnerships,
building an open architecture and core infrastructure, and
distributing computer power to managers and staff.

To support the achievement of each objective, key strategies are identified and government initiatives have been proposed for each strategy.

3.1 Renewing services and program delivery

It is no longer enough to apply technology to do the same thing more efficiently. We have to seek opportunities to improve how we do business and even change the nature of the things we do. We have to build partnerships between information management practitioners and program managers to rethink how we deliver service in the light of opportunities made possible by new technologies. Departmental planning should address program goals and information needs concurrently with innovative technological solutions. Information technology can be a catalyst to the review of how programs are delivered, and a means to the enhancement of service using fewer resources.

The Public Service 2000 Service to the Public Task Force found a strong link between excellence of service and a client-service orientation. At the same time, deputy heads have been challenged to do more with less. Information technology provides a key to achieving these objectives concurrently.

Technology investments can dramatically improve access to service and enhance quality while increasing productivity. Renewal is achievable through the following strategies and initiatives:

3.1.1 Improving the service interface

develop client service centres to provide "one stop shopping" for government services;
provide systems to enable service providers to respond to queries and complete transactions without bureaucratic delays;
provide automated services that are accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week in convenient locations;
use standard "interfaces" to facilitate the use of systems by the public and employees and to establish federal identity; and
implement systems that interact with clients and suppliers electronically, e.g. electronic data interchange.

3.1.2 Promoting innovation

recognize and reward innovative applications of information and technology;
liaise with other governments and the private sector to identify examples of innovation applicable to the federal government; and
establish mechanisms to share information on innovation.

3.1.3 Putting the client in control

give the client the tools and access to information to accomplish a task rather than hiring an employee to do it.

3.1.4 Tailoring service to special needs

meet the needs of persons who have disabilities, who are elderly, or who have other special requirements.

3.1.5 Exploiting and disseminating government information

establish better and broader public access to government information (direct or via third parties);
make government information available government-wide in electronic form; and
develop user-pay guidelines for government information.

3.2. Investing strategically

There are many opportunities to improve government operations through investments in information technology. Some of these investment opportunities are new applications while others would replace older systems. Many cannot be funded from existing departmental budgets and thus would require new money. In the present climate of restraint, it is not possible to fund all proposed projects. We must, therefore, make the right investment choices to optimize opportunities to improve programs and services. A government-wide approach is required to evaluate and select major information technology projects based on the business-case approach and such criteria as:

return on investment (reduce expenditures, generate revenue, improve service);
improving Canadian industrial competitiveness;
feasibility and risk;
financial arrangements and sources of funds;
use of private-sector resources; and
sharing with other organizations.

This business-case approach for making decisions regarding these unfunded information technology investments from a government-wide perspective will incorporate the following strategies and related initiatives:

3.2.1 Identifying projects for potential investment

identify opportunities for new applications;
review the current application and hardware base to ascertain what is obsolete or what has excessive operating or maintenance costs;
design strategies to modernize obsolete systems and to free up resources dedicated to their maintenance; and
establish an early warning system for new proposals to permit multi-year fiscal planning.

3.2.2 Evaluating, selecting and funding information technology projects using the business-case approach

rank unfunded investment proposals against established criteria;
establish a funding strategy; and
select projects for investment.

3.2.3 Promoting sharing to avoid duplication

examine proposals for new projects to identify opportunities to share existing information, technology, applications and facilities; and
encourage departments to identify and share common administrative and operational systems (e.g. salary forecasting, inspections, licensing, grants).

3.3 Building partnerships

Just as forging partnerships between information technology experts and program managers will improve the way service is delivered, partnerships with other departments and other governments, and alliances with the private sector, can also be beneficial and profitable.

Partnerships are formed between organizations to overcome an inherent weakness or to overcome fiscal or resource limitations. They should be driven by needs and result in mutual benefit to both parties. They can be used to build on strengths or to fill gaps. There are many types of partnerships that can be considered, ranging from simple exchanges of personnel, through joint ventures, to outsourcing an entire operation. Information technology organizations can establish alliances with the private sector to obtain or supplement all or part of their function where these operations can be performed better or more economically by the private sector. This allows the organization to preserve and even develop areas of strength while correcting its weaknesses.

Alliances could also be used to build applications for the government. In this case, a private-sector company would develop the application or build the facility using its own capital in return for a service contract to operate it. Another use of partnerships is an agreement whereby a company would upgrade a facility in return for the difference between the old and new operating costs for a given period. In both of these cases, the financial risk is shared by the service provider. Departments should refer to the government Work Force Adjustment directive and consult with appropriate bargaining agents when considering outsourcing.

Building Canadian economic competitiveness is another objective that can be supported by the way the government invests in information technology. Many government programs have a direct effect on industrial competitiveness. Information technology can be used to reduce compliance costs, shorten delays, reduce paper burden and otherwise improve service to industry. In addition, government contracting can help to develop Canada's information technology capabilities. Much innovative technology is developed by small and medium enterprises that often struggle for existence because of the large risks they take. Departments should be prepared to share this risk. As a government contract may make the difference in the ability of these companies to survive, the benefit to the department and to Canada may be far greater than the contract's value.

Other departments and governments may also be planning to implement systems that provide similar services or serve the same clients. Opportunities to share applications and facilities and to adopt common standards can reduce costs to all parties as well as improve service to the public. When planning to share data with other organizations, departments must ensure that privacy and security requirements are respected.

The following strategies and related initiatives can achieve these objectives:

3.3.1 Improving service through cooperation with other departments or governments

review existing or proposed service delivery systems with other departments or governments to share common applications for similar services or to reduce the burden on common clients.

3.3.2 Providing services through the use of private-sector resources

evaluate whether private-sector facilities could be shared to avoid duplication.

3.3.3 Outsourcing

review information technology services and components for opportunities to reduce costs or improve service by outsourcing to the private sector.

3.4 Building an open architecture and core infrastructure

The strategies for renewing services and program delivery imply new applications and the redevelopment of existing ones. To contain the cost of this development, an infrastructure comprising technical strategies, standards, common systems and shared networks must be built. The objective of this infrastructure is a flexible, open-systems environment that facilitates change at minimum cost.

Several lead agencies and common-service organizations are mandated to provide departments with information management services and support. To prevent duplication and to ensure maximum overall efficiency, these organizations should coordinate their plans and strategies.

The government should move towards common and integrated administrative systems in finance, human resources, assets and materiel in order to take maximum advantage of limited resources, to support managers and to enhance electronic transfer of information. By the end of the decade, administrative systems should be paperless.

The increasing use of information technology and the interdependence of information systems means that all governments and businesses are increasingly vulnerable to security risks or problems of sensitive information being disclosed. With the concentration of information in government agencies, the risk of disasters as a result of such events as fires or power outages can also affect the availability of essential systems. For this reason, a critical part of this strategy is to protect the government's information assets. The government will have to increase its efforts to provide appropriate security measures and contingency plans in new systems and to balance expenditures on security against the need to make investments that are urgently required.

Retaining certain government information is essential for maintaining corporate memory and, in a broader sense, the country's national heritage. While procedures for preserving valuable paper records are well established, corresponding practices for electronic information are lagging behind the rapid growth in the use of microcomputers and networks.

The following strategies and related initiatives respond to these needs:

3.4.1 Establishing objectives for providing service electronically

achieve the following electronic service objectives by the end of the decade:

information to be converted to electronic form only once and then communicated electronically to all applications for which it is required;
routine internal transactions to be carried out electronically, eliminating paper documents except where absolutely necessary for legal reasons;
applications that intercommunicate to use standard, government-wide protocols; and
applications of a particular technology, e.g. smart cards or bar codes, to use the government-wide standard version of the technology.

3.4.2 Developing an open architecture for government information technology

develop an open architecture for government based on a shared government telecommunications network, decentralization and common systems;
adopt appropriate information technology standards for use in government in coordination with other governments and the National Standards System of Canada; and
ensure Treasury Board Information and Technology Standards (TBITS) are specified when hardware and software are being procured.

3.4.3 Improving information management across the government

develop guidelines and procedures for managing and preserving electronic records, especially transitory records;
establish liaison between common-service organizations and with their clients;
coordinate the activities of committees in information management; and
establish common information management for core functions (finance, personnel, real property and materiel).

3.4.4 Protecting information, assets and intellectual property

develop and implement business resumption or disaster recovery plans;
implement standards and guidelines to ensure the privacy and security of classified and designated information assets; and
identify, establish ownership and exploit government intellectual property (information and software).

3.4.5 Improving the quality of information systems

adopt quality standards for systems development; and
educate designers of information systems to incorporate the requirements of the Management of Government Information Holdings policy, the Access to Information and Privacy policy, and the Security policy into the design of new systems.

3.5 Distributing computer power to managers and staff

The decentralization of computing power to the desktop is shifting the knowledge about, responsibility for and control of computers and information from experts to managers and staff. The growing trend away from "technology push" towards "user pull" in the drive for change should be encouraged. The past emphasis on improving productivity through automation shifted much of the responsibility for designing business processes from the program manager to the information systems function. The current emphasis on improving service and program delivery allows program managers to re-assume prime responsibility. If senior managers are to lead these changes rather than react to them, they must be provided with and be willing to accept increased education and training in the use of enabling technology and in the management of information resources.

Similarly, line managers and their staff must also receive education and training so that they can fully manage their information resources and better apply the power of their computers to optimize the way they do their jobs. Furthermore, it must be realized that significant resources have to be allocated to support the extensive information, software, hardware and networks that will be implemented in government offices. Finally, employees should be able to use technology in the official language of their choice, including receiving training and documentation in that language.

One government objective is to use information technology to modernize the Public Service. The PS2000 White Paper states, "The Government believes that a professional, career Public Service, capable of attracting and retaining Canadians of talent, commitment and imagination, is essential to Canada's national well-being." The report identifies "broadly-based training and development" as one of the two measures to support this objective. When technology is provided to employees, they are often taught only the mechanics of its operation rather than how to apply it productively to their work. Enhancing employees' knowledge and skills will increase productivity, improve service and, at the same time, make the government a more attractive place to work. This will support the recruitment and retention of staff.

The employees of information management organizations need to be trained to work with managers in designing new ways to provide service. These employees must be convinced of the benefits of sharing with other organizations rather than having their own customized applications and facilities.

The following strategies and related initiatives will help achieve these objectives:

3.5.1 Empowering managers with information and technology

develop an awareness program to help senior managers become comfortable with technology; and
provide managers with information systems to help them manage and make decisions.

3.5.2 Helping people cope with and use technology

ensure employees receive proper training to use technology and improve their performance;
ensure adequate technical support is available for office support systems;
ensure employees can use technology and receive training in its use in the official language of their choice;
use advanced techniques to deliver education and training programs;
ensure appropriate information technology material is included in other courses; and
address employee concerns about information technology by educating and providing guidelines to managers.

3.5.3 Improving the performance of information management practitioners

improve the training of information management staff (e.g. information management concepts, strategic planning, and the business-case approach);
promote sharing of information on experiences; and
establish information management as a career specialty.